Wilderness and snow

I’m looking into making soap at home and keep seeing most redditors using long rectangular loaf molds, similar to cake tins, then slicing the soap into bars.

Why are these so popular compared with individual molds that make more traditional oval or rounded rectangular bars? Is it mainly about making batches and decorative designs, or are there other advantages?

Some of the finished bars look quite tall and chunky. Do you find them comfortable for everyday handwashing, or do you cut them into smaller pieces before using them? I recently had one in my hand at a farmers market and didn't like the shape and size in my hand, so for that reason, i would prefer smaller cavity molds, but curious what else makes them so popular...

Made also with tepezcohuite coconut oil maceration.

I was driving to an appointment early one morning and saw that a neighbor had but this out on the curb for trash pickup. On my way home an hour later it was still there so I loaded it in the back of my car (barely) and took it home. I was going to have to buy something like this, but there it was. I also left a note on the door saying I took it just to be sure. Just goes to show that you can find stuff like this second hand that other people dont want. It had all the drawers too

Okay so I want to start off I did this in my garage with the door open.

I wore PPE long aprons, long gloves, long sleves, long pants, closed toe shoes, mask, eye cover on top of my glasses.

I mixed all the oils first and make sure it was temp at 100 f and same with the distilled water.

Just to be safe I switched out my gloves since I was using it for the oils.

I make sure to only pour the exact grams with all this equipment. Then all the sudden I'm so itchy all over.

I immediately stopped took off everything safely.

Did a cold shower for 15 minutes I crapped out at 10 and had to just do body sections I was freezing 🥶

Why did I have this reaction? I'm so confused 😕

This is the lye I used.

https://a.co/d/0fHRs3Yt

Here is my latest using a soap out of a squeeze bottle technique that I wanted to try. I lined the bottles with those little plastic pillow things you get in packages. You just cut one end and stick it in the bottle. When you are done, there ends up being a lot of soap left that doesn't come out so I squeeze the lining out into another mold and that is how the last 2 pictures were done, just pulling out the liner and squeezing the excess. I'm pleased at how they all came out. The recipe is the same as my last project but used lemongrass scent.

I was wondering how everyone organizes the soaps that they make. Also, if you go to craft shows, how to do you transport? I’m trying to find an easy way.

So I am very, super, mega new to this and I made my first tray of homemade soap bars:)
50% bees wax
50% soap glycerin
Then just some dried flowers and frankincense for fragrance and a few drops of soap dye. Seems like the soap dye doesn’t mix well with the beeswax but I’m afraid to use beef tallow as a first timer. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Hello! Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask, but…

My aunt loves soap making. She’s turned it into a run-at-home business and vendors at things such as farmers markets etc. She does not have a studio but has a decent amount of soaps (and candles, waxes, etc) on hand, for reference.

She’s been discussing how she struggles to organize and needs more organization, and Christmas is around the corner, so wondering if anyone has some suggestions? Please? I don’t really know how to organize a lot of a little, or what’s good and bad.

As for aesthetics— don’t really worry. I mainly need ideas of what to look for, but some direct links or sites would be nice to get the gears going.

Thank you so much!

I've thought about selling mp kits or instructions as I could make my own design and specific color blocks to go with them, especially with christmas coming. I've only found one business that provides just instructions (no molds), they're cp and more expensive as you subscribe and have to buy a bar.

I’m very new to cold process soap making, and was hoping for some feedback on a recipe.

I’ve just moved from using strictly recipes from a how-to book, to experimenting a little bit with different oils and colors. I heard that sunflower oil adds a nice quality in low amounts. This is my first time using it. I did use an online lye calculator and allowed for 5% superfat.

4 oz sodium hydroxide
9.13 oz distilled water
12 oz coconut oil
12 oz olive oil
4 oz sunflower oil
Mica colorant
1 oz essential oil
Poppy seeds (for exfoliation)

It’s still curing, so I haven’t been able to try it yet. I’m a little worried I used too much coconut oil and should have done something closer to 8 oz coconut oil and 16 oz olive oil, because coconut oil is drying. The essential oil I used is a mix of lemongrass (0.5 fl oz) and tangerine (0.5 fl oz).

I didn’t know when I made it that lemongrass essential oil can cause irritation. I’ve used this amount in soaps for myself before with no skin issues. But if this is true, I feel like I shouldn’t gift any of this batch to others and just use it myself. I think it turned out pretty, despite the possible problems. Any feedback appreciated! I’ll drop a pic just to share.

I had some leftover breast milk in my freezer, so I decided to make soap! 🧼😂

My first attempt was 50% breast milk, but it turned out too soft and sticky..

For my final attempt, I concentrated the milk and added some breast milk butter (left over from my previous video).

This bar turned out much firmer! The only thing that changed was the color, not sure why.

I've already made butter and now soap. Any ideas what I should make next? 🤣

Hey all, I’m posting this because I was wondering if anyone has ever experimented with making soap out of wild game fat, specifically deer/elk? I’m not sure where to start, but this year so far we have 3 bucks in the freezer with lots of fat, so I didn’t see why that should all go to waste and the idea of soap came into my head.
If anyone has any tips or advice, it’d be greatly appreciated! Also looking for the best steps to take.

Ran my cold-process numbers properly for the first time and the gap between "felt profitable" and "actually profitable" was uncomfortable, so sharing the method in case it helps someone.

Batch of 12 bars. Materials by usage (not by what I paid for the bottle): olive oil $8.40, coconut $3.60, lye $1.30, fragrance $5.40, mica $1.40 = $20.10. Packaging $4.80. Labour: 3 hours at $15/hr = $45 (the part everyone skips). Overhead $4. Batch total: $73.90, so $6.16 per bar.

At a $9.50 list price with a 5% platform fee and $0.25 per order split across 2 bars per typical order: net $8.90, profit $2.74/bar, 28.9% margin. Break-even list price: $6.61.

Two things that changed my pricing: (1) costing materials by amount USED, not amount bought — my "cost per bar" was a fantasy before that; (2) the fixed per-order fee hurts twice as much on single-bar orders, so I now price for the worst case.

If you've never computed your break-even list price, that's the one number worth finding this weekend: (unit cost + fixed fee per item) ÷ (1 − percentage fee).

Any criticism or tips/tricks are very welcomed and wanted!
I used “Skin Said Yes” goat milk soap base, The Soaping Factory colloidal oats, Nate’s raw organic honey, plant therapy vanilla extract, organic cocoa powder and turmeric!

This is my first time ever making soap so I’m happy with the presentation but less so happy with the process. I loved making it but I hit a lot of bumps. Basically everything clumped up on me besides the goat milk. Didn’t use enough oil so it barely smells vanilla and the powders didn’t dye it as much as I wanted!

I believe in the future I may skip the oats and honey. I just want a clean base I can do interesting colors, designs and scents with!

I'm getting into soap carving and started a gallon ziploc for scraps because its clearly going to be a lot.. can I just melt the scraps in a wax burner or something and pour into a mould cube to reuse or is there a lot more to it than that?

A friend and I enjoyed a soap making evening the other night to get a few loaves done in time for winter holiday gifts.

This was my first time trying kiss and pour, I was going for a very specific effect- wood grain for my Lumberjack soap (scent is a blend of essential oils: Scotch pine, frankincense, cinnamon bark and sweet orange). The pour has to be done at a very thin trace.
I am over the moon with the result!!!

I gave some soaps to someone with a water softener apparently connected to their home water system and I was like why are my hands so slippery still even after rinsing thoroughly. Apparently this is the reason. For a moment I was worried it was something wrong with my soap. I do not like this effect. At my own place the water must be hard and all the suds wash right off.

Is hot process soap not as good as cold process?

I've made a few batches so far, all were hot process. I got some really nice bars that I use daily. They're all mostly beef tallow and coconut. Just got some shea butter and castor oil.

Why would I want to do cold process instead? Were there any milestones in your journey?

...Oh, and where are the best places to find supplies??

No need to answer every question. Thanks ahead of time!

Wanted to show off my most recent batch. She’s scented with Moroccan Mint Tea & I added some poppyseeds for mild exfoliation. I absolutely love her.

I used to get tallow direct from a farm where I lived, but I’ve moved and can’t find a local connect in my new area (I’m in the PNW, U.S.). Where do you guys find good quality tallow? I’m not the biggest fan of Amazon, so I’d be extra grateful for non-Amazon resources if you have them. TIA so much!

I am making a solid dish soap (0 super fat) recipe by Ellen Ruth (will attach the recipe) I accidentally used 92g of lye instead of 90.4g of lye. Will this be okay or should I add more oils ? Thanks! (I’m a newbie)